Back in November Shepherd Neame Brewery released a brand new bottled range - their 'Classic Collection' series, inspired by various recipes found in the brewery's archives. The first two beers were of a very high quality (reviews can be found here for the India Pale Ale & Double Stout) so I was extremely pleased when this bottle arrived unannounced in the post:

Brilliant Ale - 5.6% golden, brilliantly bright, hoppy ale inspired by an original mid-19th century recipe found in the brewery archives. Hopped with East Kent Goldings (as in the original recipe) but then brought up to date a little with the inclusion of both UK and US Cascade hops